After beating the Carolina Panthers in the wild-card round, the Los Angeles Rams will take on the Chicago Bears on Sunday at Soldier Field with a chance to move on to the NFC championship.
Not only do the Bears present the Rams with challenges on the field with the players on their roster, but the weather could also be an issue, as it’s expected to be around 22 degrees with a possibility of snow around kickoff.
Obviously, the Rams play their home games in Los Angeles, where it will be almost 70 degrees around the same time, so many believe the cold could really impact the way that Sean McVay’s team plays.
However, special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica isn’t someone who subscribes to those beliefs.
“In regard to the wind, I think that last week was a good test case for us,” Kotwica told reporters on Thursday. “It was windy and guys that were there in Carolina, it was windier than maybe the TV predicted. The other thing there is it was gusty. The thing that I would share about Harrison [Mevis] is he’s from Warsaw, Indiana. It’s not like he’s a guy that grew up in Florida and never dealt with any kind of wind or cold. Then of course he played in Missouri. He did a really good job, not only in the game, but pregame, very solid.
“We’ll take a look at the weather pregame. I think it gets exacerbated at times to be transparent with you. Wind can obviously be a factor. But with the cold, they have heated benches. Again, last week with Harrison specifically his ability to handle that wind I think it was a good experience for him.”
Kotwica is from Chicago, so this game will be fun for him to be back in those conditions, but he doesn’t see it as an execute not to get their jobs done.
“It brings me back to a different time in a different place,” he explained. “I grew up on the south side and I’m very familiar with playing the game, whether it be in the snow or the cold or the wind. It brings you back, but still at the end of the day, it’s the ability to execute. The team that’s going to win this game isn’t because of the wind or the cold. It’s the team that executes their responsibilities the best. That’s who’s going to end up winning this football game.”
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This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams ST coach downplays impact of weather ahead of Bears game
Reporting by Mike Masala, Rams Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
